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10.30.2013

Savory Maple and Sweet Potato Risotto

We love real maple syrup to such a degree that we have never allowed the fake stuff into our home, and when venturing out to a restaurant for breakfast, Amy will bring a small container of her cousins' syrup with her. Yes, it's that important. We even used it in a brownie recipe once. So why not in a savory one-pot dinner dish?

We repurposed an old risotto recipe of ours to make it easier. So easy, in fact, that it can be make in one pot. And this recipe, now, has it all: deliciously creamy rice, slightly caramelized chunks of sweet potato, soft onions, an herby savoriness that comes from fresh rosemary, and a delightful hint of sweetness from - you guessed it! - real maple syrup.

As for using maple syrup in a risotto dish? That's just our way to...

We, and the neighbors we shared it with, loved this dish so much we thought we needed to enter it into Pure Canada Maple's "Think Outside the Griddle" contest.

The recipe, as always, is below. Like we said, it's a one-pot wonder, and here's the best thing - it makes lots of risotto. And we have a great idea for the leftovers - make arancini the next day! To do that, just take the chilled leftover risotto, form it into small balls, roll the balls in Italian breadcrumbs and fry in a skillet filled about 1/4-inch of the way up with vegetable oil. Serve with a nice green salad to make another meal!

Savory Maple and Sweet Potato Risotto

Ingredients:

4 cups vegetable broth

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cups (about 1 large) peeled, diced sweet potato

1 medium onion, chopped

1 tablespoon butter

1 cup arborio rice

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary

salt and white pepper to taste

1/4 cup real maple syrup

Place the vegetable broth into a saucepan and place over medium-low heat to become warm. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the diced sweet potato and a pinch of salt and cook until sweet potato starts to brown. Add onions and continue to cook until the onions become translucent. Add the butter and allow it to melt. Pour in the rice and continue to cook, stirring, until rice starts to toast. Add the warm vegetable broth to the rice one ladle at a time, stirring constantly, and waiting until all the broth is absorbed by the rice before adding more. This could take up to one-half hour. When the broth is gone and the rice is done (not too firm, not too mushy), stir in the chopped rosemary and season with salt and white pepper to taste. Turn off the heat, then add the maple syrup, stirring gently so that everything is well combined, then serve and enjoy!